TheNew Senate (Filipino:Bagong Senado),[3] also known as theNew Senate Building, is a government building under construction inFort Bonifacio,Taguig, Philippines. It is set to be the new building of theSenate of the Philippines starting in mid-2027.
A Senate building was constructed at theBatasan area with₱41.163 million spent for the construction. However, the project was discontinued and the building was repurposed for the electoral tribunals of the Senate and theHouse of Representatives.[10]
It was only in 2017 that plans for a new Senate building had significant progress. SenatorWin Gatchalian filed P.S. Resolution No. 293 which created an ad hoc committee to conduct a feasibility study for the construction of a new Senate building.[5]
In November 21, 2017, the Senate selectedFort Bonifacio inTaguig as the site of the new Senate building taking into account various factors such as accessibility, costs, and opinion poll from Senate employees.[11][12]Antipolo inRizal was the other option considered.[12][13] In January 2018, the Senate has pledge to purchase a lot from theBases Conversion Development Authority.[14]
In February 2018, a design competition for the New Senate Building was open to entrants. 40 firms (16 domestic and 24 foreign) expressed interest to participate. Five were shortlisted to come up and present a design for a new Senate building. These firms areAECOM, Aidea,Henning Larsen Architects, Leeser Architecture, andPelli Clarke Pelli Architects.[4]AECOM's design was selected as the winning entry.[6]
The groundbreaking ceremony for the New Senate Building was held on March 18, 2019, with the structure initially set to be completed by 2022.[15] TheDepartment of Public Works and Highways implemented the construction for the new Senate building project, which in turn awarded the contract to Hilmarc Construction Corporation,[16] which is linked to former Vice PresidentJejomar Binay (father of then-senatorNancy Binay).[17][18] A budget of₱8.9 billion was allocated for the construction project.[19][20]
Construction would be disrupted by theCOVID-19 pandemic.[21] The building was topped-out on July 20, 2023.[22]
The Senate projected to hold its first meeting in the building in July 2024.[23] However, Senate presidentFrancis Escudero said that the move would be postponed until at least 2025, as the building was not yet ready as of May 2024.[24] On June 10, 2024, he ordered the suspension of construction to review concerns over the rising cost of₱23 billion.[25] Despite this, the construction, whose Phase 1 was 77% complete at that time, would continue unless SenatorAlan Peter Cayetano, the chairman of theSenate Committee on Accounts, issues an order to halt the project.[26]
By February 2025, Escudero had assessed that the building will be finished either by late 2026 or early 2027 and that he prefers it to be inaugurated by the then-incoming 21st Congress in 2028, instead of the20th Congress.[27] In June 2025, Cayetano announced set to target move to Taguig by mid-2027.[28][29]
In January 2026, Senate presidentTito Sotto has stated that the relocation to the new building could be done by the middle or third quarter of 2027.[30][31] SenatorPanfilo Lacson, the current chairperson of the Committee on Accounts, assured Sotto that construction costs will be lower as various budgetary items contributing to the increased expenditures were removed.
AECOM is the architect responsible for the New Senate Building.[6] It is a complex of four office buildings on a podium structure. The Senate plenary hall is situated in the central part of the podium which is adjacent to the four towers. The sun in thePhilippine flag served as inspiration for the structure's form, theBanaue Rice Terraces for its internal greening and facade, and thebarong tagalog for its external facade.[2]
